by BBG

Total Abuse - Prison Sweat art

If you weren't paying attention, you might have missed Total Abuse's Mutt, which surfaced its ugly head last year on Post Present Medium Records (Dean Spunt of No Age's imprint). The eleven track ripper encompassed elements of early negative hardcore, wearing its Void, Necros, and Black Flag influences on their tattered, punk-patch covered sleeve.

Austin's Total Abuse definitely have similar influences to bands like Cold Sweat, Men's Interest, Sex Vid and some of the Youth Attack crew, but also dabble in noise/power-electronics on their latest LP Prison Sweat which is out NOW via PPM. The LP, which opens with seven-minutes of brutal noise, blasts off by the second track "Early Morning" and is propelled with a similar furious energy throughout the remainder of the LP until it hits the final title track. From there Prison Sweat moves into a different mode, falling in line with side-2-of-My War Black Flag and latter feedback-obsessed hardcore bands like Drunkdriver or Pissed Jeans, but also venturing into borderline Swans/Godflesh style noise destruction. Stream all of Prison Sweat for the first time below.

Total Abuse only has one show scheduled as of now, at the PPM 10 year anniversary party in LA at The Smell on 11/4 - 11/6. The three day festival will feature appearances from No Age, Abe Vigoda, High Places, John Wiese, Gun Outfit, Dunes, Eric Copeland, Bleached (who play a BV CMJ party on 10/21) and many more, including an appearance from Total Abuse-related project White Dog, whose new album Triumurate is also out now on PPM. Stream tracks from White Dog, and all of Total Abuse's Prison Sweat below, alongside details of the PPM Anniversary show.

Continue reading "stream Total Abuse's new LP 'Prison Sweat', see them at PPM's 10th Anniversary fest (if you're in LA)"

photos by Bao Nguyen, words by Rachel Kowal

For a sold-out show, the audience was oddly quiet and subdued for much the evening, but the laid back atmosphere was a perfect match for the first band of the evening, MINKS. As the members of MINKS walked on stage, they casually surveyed the crowd and began to play without uttering a single word. At their posts, they stood as still as stick figures, virtually motionless.

For such pleasantly upbeat music, the surprisingly lively "Cemetery Rain" aside, their performance was surprisingly deadpan - even with additional musicians helping out. (Are you really 'happy' to be playing, Sean Kilfoyle? Really?) They were a morose version of the Crayon Fields (but with female vocals added to the mix). Singer Amalie Bruun may be the most listless tambourine player I've ever witnessed, but I found myself oddly drawn to her. (Would she start to dance? Maybe smile a little? Open up between songs? No. Not so much.)

Up next was Abe Vigoda who immediately imbued the room with a bit of life, thanks largely to the poppy keyboard solo in their opening number, "Dream of My Love." Throughout their set, the LA group kept things interesting by switching instruments - often mid song. The drummer was especially good at jumping around on stage from instrument to instrument. The audience, however, remained largely reserved. "What? Are you scared to dance?" asked the keyboard player after a few songs. "It's fun."

As if responding to the challenge, one audience member tried half-heartedly to get a mosh pit going, but the movement didn't catch on. People did at least loosen up a bit though - especially by the time Wild Nothing began to play.

Like MINKS, Wild Nothing is a fun blend of sunny pop and subdued shoegaze, but they were definitely peppier than their opener. They even had girls dancing on stage for the beginning of their set.

"You're very polite and quiet and it freaks me out," admitted front man Jack Tatum. He was right. It was kind of weird. Much of the room seemed to be under a trance. (Maybe it was the combination of it being a Sunday and the night before Valentine's Day.)

After playing a few newer songs and a brief cover (Primal Scream's "Velocity Girl"), Wild Nothing closed their initial set with "Summer Holiday," which actually got more than a few people dancing. Following the warm applause from the crowd, they returned for a quick encore - the song "Bored Game," which seemed appropriate, given the lyrics ("I don't feel right without you") and the number of couples in the room.

--

Abe Vigoda played in Manhattan again last night (Valentine's Day) at Le Poisson Rouge as part of the venue's "Radio Happy Hour" series. Abe and Wild Nothing play a recently-added Brooklyn show at 285 Kent tonight (2/15). Fergus & Geronimo has been added as opener and advanced tickets are on sale at Desert Island Books (540 Metropolitan Ave | 718.388.5087). MINKS' next NYC show is with Dirty Beaches and Dum Dum Girls who they head out on tour with this month. After Brooklyn, Abe and Wild Nothing continue on tour together. All remaining dates and more pictures from Bowery Ballroom, below...

Continue reading "Wild Nothing & Abe Vigoda played Bowery w/ MINKS (pics), playing 285 Kent w/ Fergus & Geronimo (tonight)"

Mr. Wild Nothing @ Bowery Ballroom (more by Chris Gersbeck)

Wild Nothing & Abe Vigoda are out on tour and playing Bowery Ballroom together on February 13th. That show is now just about sold out (grab a ticket fast if you want one), so they added a 2nd NYC show. The new one is happening two days later, February 15th at 285 Kent Ave in Williamsburg, Brooklyn (right by Glasslands). Abe Vigoda, as previously pointed out, are also playing a show on February 14th (Valentine's Day) at Le Poisson Rouge. Todd P will have more details on the Brooklyn show later. Updated tour dates below...

Continue reading "Wild Nothing add 2nd NYC show (for Abe Vigoda that makes 3)"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Gross Relations - You Don't Know Me (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Anika - Yang Yang (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Anika - Terry (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: ARMS - Floaters (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Martial Canterel - You Today (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Martial Canterel - Retrospective (Zip)
DOWNLOAD: The Vacant Lots - Confusion (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Don Giovanni Sampler (Zip)

Gross Relations

In addition to being Black History Month, National Bird Feeding Month and National Sweet Potato Month, February also seems to consistently have a lot of band residencies. You may already be aware of ones by ARMS (who I'll get to shortly) and Yellow Ostrich,  but I'd also like to point out that up-and-coming Brooklyn indie rock band Gross Relations starts a three-week Tuesday residency tonight (2/8) at Bruar Falls.

Gross Relations have been going less than a year, but seem to have a clear idea with what they want to sound like. Like Mr. Dream and Diehard, the band shares a love of '90s indie rock. With the prominent keyboard lead lines (or maybe it's heavily-treated guitar?) on both sides of their "Fuzzy Timelines" 7", it's pretty easy to make comparisons to The Rentals, but the band they really remind me of is Chicago's late, great Number One Cup.

Either way, it's a good thing. Gross Relations write some majorly catchy songs. You can download the b-side to their single at the top of this post. Tonight's residency also features The Toothaches (whose debut album is a free download), Gone Bad, and NT.

ARMS @ Glasslands in December (more by Andrew St. Clair)

I mentioned ARMS briefly above who are on Week Two (2/9) of their February Wednesdays residency at Pianos. Todd Goldstein and the rest of the band are finishing up work on their debut album (Kids Aflame was more of a Todd solo thing) with Shane Stoneback (Vampire Weekend, Sleigh Bells). So expect a lot of new songs, I'd imagine. Todd says of the record, "It's a vast, hi-fi album. We're doing everything we can to take full advantage of the studio... the songs are very poppy and a little weird, there are lots of beautiful/scary textures, copious-but-thoughtful use of reverb... sequenced into a song-cycle, a sort of sci-fi breakup album." ARMS are hoping to have it out by the summer.

This week's residency is especially strong I think. It includes the lovely Hospitality, who finally seem to be getting down to business, having wrapped up their long-gestating debut album (also with Stoneback) which could be out as early as the spring. Let's hope! Singer Amber Papini promises a couple new songs at the show.

Also playing: Radical Dads, whose new single is a free  for you (with email address) via the increasingly popular Download Widget (found below). And Translations (who share a member with ARMS) open who I am super psyched to finally be seeing live after months of digging their debut 7".

Show's eight bucks, will be a good one.

Martial Canterel

Also Wednesday is the record release party for Martial Canterel's You Today which came out today on Wierd Records. The show is part of Wierd's weekly Wednesday night party at Home Sweet Home. The flyer says performance at midnight, but I've never seen a band go on there before 1AM.

Martial Canterel is the non de synth of Sean McBride who is also one half of Xeno & Oaklander. McBride is kind of a luddite, making his records entirely on vintage equipment that was probably cutting-edge technology in 1980. Obviously it sounds very retro, but McBride's way of doing things also gives it a sound -- and authenticity -- you can't quite replicate on a laptop. Check out the title track at the top of this post. And if you dig that, also up there is a free downloadable Martial Canterel retrospective, including some rare songs.

Anika

In town this weekend is Anika whose debut album was a late-breaking entry into my Favorite Albums of 2011. Recorded in 12 days, live with no overdubs, it sounds like the missing link between The Slits and Lilliput. Portishead's Geoff Barrow -- his other band BEAK> is the backing band here -- gets the claustrophobic vibe just right. A lot of people have tried and failed to recreate that Martin Hannett Sound... Barrow nails it. And the material -- a mix of girl group covers and politically-charged originals -- suits Anika's Nico-esque delivery perfectly.

You can download two tracks from the album at the top of this post. "Yang Yang" is a Yoko Ono cover, and "Terry" was originally recorded by Twinkle, who is probably best-known for having made the original version of "Golden Lights" that was later covered by The Smiths. (Many Smiths fans' least favorite track, but not mine. That would be "Never Had No One Ever.") The album sort of snuck out at the end of 2011, so catch up now. So good.

Don't get too excited though, Anika is just over for some DJ gigs -- I'm hearing we'll get her performing in May (and probably later at ATP) -- but I'd recommend checking one of them out nonetheless. Especially as three of them are free: on Thursday (2/10) she'll be at Gallery Bar with Blu Jemz, then  Saturday (2/12) at Trophy Bar and a Valentine's Day set  (2/14) at The Commodore. The remaining three NY DJ appearances are atMercury Lounge tomorrow night (2/9) spinning between sets at the Cubic Zirconia show (tickets), and Glasslands on Friday (2/11) where she'll spin in between sets by Javelin, High Life, & Monster Rally (tickets), and finally Santos Pary House on 2/16 as part of the previously discussed Beans show with Edan, Paten Locke & Bluebird (tickets).

That Javelin show on Friday night should be fun, as Anika's tastes will nicely contrast/compliment the sounds of Javelin (always one of the better live bands saddled with the "chillwave" tag), Highlife and Monster Rally.

That's the big stuff this week. Some more picks, day-by-day, are below.

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 8

Gang of Four at Webster Hall, though really it's more like Gang of Two as it's just Jon King and Andy Gill from the original line-up these days. Their new album, Content, isn't bad. But most people will go to hear "To Hell With Poverty," "At Home He's  a Tourist," and other classics. And while Hugo and Dave will be missed, Andy Gill is still amazing to watch spit out those riffs, and Jon King remains possessed on stage -- especially when he's beating the shit out of a microwave on "He'd Send in the Army."

continued below...

Continue reading "Gross Relations, ARMS, Martial Canterel, Anika, Vacant Lots, Javelin, Abe Vigoda, Don Giovanni, more in This Week in Indie"

Phil of Kylesa at Public Assembly (more by Markus Shaffer)

Kylesa are having a great end-of-year thanks to many accolades for their 2010 effort Spiral Shadow. I'm sure they'll see many new fans in the audience while touring at the end of Dececmber and through most of January. Tickets are still on sale for their headlining show at Santos Party House.

We asked Phillip Cope of Kylesa what he listened to in 2010. His list makes me think that maybe Beach House is the answer to world peace, or at least that Beach House is something that Broken Social Scene, Kate Nash, S Carey and Kylesa can all agree on (and an album that SPIN and Rolling Stone BOTH put at exactly #17 on their lists). His full list of favorite songs, most of them with video streams, below...

Continue reading "Kylesa's Phillip Cope lists his favorite songs of 2010 (listen)"

Wild Nothing @ Bowery Ballroom during CMJ (more by Amanda Hatfield)

Wild Nothing and Abe Vigoda are going on a co-headlining tour that will hit Bowery Ballroom on 2/13. Tickets for the NYC show go on sale Friday at noon. All dates below...

Continue reading "Wild Nothing & Abe Vigoda going on tour (2011 dates) "

words by Andrew Frisicano, photos by Chris Juarez & Rachel Carr

Local Natives & the crowd @ FYF Fest Saturday

Yesterday was FYF Fest. We know all the problems... The lines... And are addressing them now. In no way are we sleeping on these problems. The bands were amazing and the turn out was unreal. I'm speechless. -Sean Carlson & FYF Fest

That's how the FYF Fest organizers started their post-fest email, which also outlined new, cheaper pricing to the three "fan fest" shows it hosted on Sunday in LA. For all the organizational problems on Saturday, FYF still managed to put on a highly enjoyable day of bands, around 37 total across three stages (plus a comedy tent), at LA State Historic Park.

The day's short sets kept you wanting more from nearly every act, many of whom played for a half hour or 35 minutes (which expanded in 5 minute increments up to an hour for the headliners). That made for tough decisions between overlapping sets. Ted Leo and band blew through their 45 minutes, and Titus Andronicus could've continued for another 35 at least with the momentum from their Monitor songs. Those two, along with Screaming Females, were part of what Ted Leo termed the "New Jersey Takeover" - three punk bands with Garden State roots who all played great sets at the fest.

Ariel Pink

Los Angeles represented with a number of notable hometown acts. Growlers, in grey facepaint, brought an earthy, ramshackle sound and lots of friends. Best Coast, Abe Vigoda, Local Natives and Ariel Pink also repped their hometown - the latter two with mezmerizing late afternoon sets.

Other acts brought some nice surprises. A chorus of kids, costumed as zombie versions of dead historical figures, backed Dead Man's Bones' Ryan Gosling and Zach Shields. The Blow introduced some of her new songs written for an unnamed celebrity (and played recognizable earlier songs too, including one "written with Sting...when [she] was 7"). And Big Freedia, the fest's only act with any trace of hip-hop, shocked the crowd with a short pre-headerliner dose of "Azz Everywhere."

Big Freedia

There was plenty of garage rock (Thee Oh Sees brought the man responsible for their cover art, William Keihn, to play tambourine), punk and metal. A reunited Sleep, in New York this week, grinded away, as !!! had people shaking their ass on the sister stage. On the fest's third stage, hardcore band 7 Seconds reminisced about their first time in LA almost 30 years ago and lead a spirited circle pit. Add to those bands, breezy folk from AA Bondy, the jams of Warpaint and Delorean to name a few.

If FYF's organizers are a bit defensive above, it may be with good reason: the few critical organizational errors were fairly memorable. A long line at will call (an hour would be a short estimate) kept many waiting in the 90 degree sun while the first bands of the day (Magic Kids, Let's Wrestle and The Goat) could be heard starting in the distance. Water inside was also an issue, with limited access to free drinking water and bottled water at $4 (which, according to Noah Lennox, ran out).

By the end of the night, the two final acts - The Rapture and Panda Bear - set up on competing stages. Panda Bear aka Noah Lennox interspersed his dreamy lullabies with patches of noise and dissonance while videos and images that could be described only as "trippy" played behind him; I think your response to the set depended largely on your state of mind after the long day: exhausted or ready for a patience-testing string of songs and sounds. He and The Rapture provided, alternately, a place to dance or doze.

--

Unsane also played a rare runion set at the festival where Off! shared a bill with Lower Dens. School of Seven Bells, Davila 666, Cults and Ceremony were there too.

Read what Noah thought about his own set, HERE. More pictures from the entire day, below...

Continue reading "FYF Fest 2010 in pics & review "

Abe Vigoda @ the Whitney in 2009 (more by Tim Griffin)

Abe Vigoda arrive back in NYC tonight, Friday, August 20th, for a special show at Cake Shop. It's a "Nacho Party" presented by Pop Montreal and will also feature sets by fellow Californian Hawnay Troof, Hollerado and Uncle Bad Touch (members of Priestess).

Abe Vigoda will also play Brooklyn while they're here. You can catch them Saturday night, August 21st, at Death by Audio again with Canadian band Hollerado, and also with Portland's purple rhinestone eagle (who play the Charleston Friday night) and Brooklyn's passive aggressor.

From there Abe Vigoda go back home to play some shows with Cap'n Jazz and then Cold Cave leading up to FYF Fest in LA on September 4th. In October they head overseas where they then tour with No Age. All dates and Hollerado's new video for "Fake Drugs", below...

Continue reading "Abe Vigoda playing 2 NYC shows, dates w/ Capn Jazz, FYF Fest, Europe w/ No Age & more (Cake Shop tonight)"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Woods - I Was Gone (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: The Fresh & Onlys - Diamond in the Dark (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Moon Duo - Stumbling 22nd St. (MP3)

Woods

There's a lot going on in the wild world of Woodsist Records. Firstly is the Woodsist night at Music Hall of Williamsburg in Brooklyn on June 25 that's part of the Northside Festival (June 24 - 27). The show features Real Estate, Woods, The Fresh & Onlys, Moon Duo and Sic Alps. Tickets ($15) go on sale Friday (4/30) at noon. This and the Brooklyn Vegan show with Memory Tapes, Twin Sister, Zaza and DOM on June 26 are two of four Northside events at Music Hall of Williamsburg this year (Thao and Mirah is another).

Woodsist is also doing two mini-festivals on the West Coast next month: June 12 at the Henry Miller Library in Big Sur and June 15 at the Echoplex in Los Angeles. The line-ups differ slightly, but both shows feature Real Estate, Woods, Kurt Vile, The Mantles and The Art Museums. Full line-ups for both shows are at the bottom of this post.

Woods, who also have a show coming up at Abrons Arts Center in May, will be releasing their third album, At Echo Lake, next week. Clocking in just under 30 minutes, it's full of catchy West Coast-ish folk pop. It might be their best yet. You can download "I Was Gone" at the top of this post. The band is touring the West Coast leading up to those two mini-fests. All dates are below.

The Fresh and Onlys

The Fresh & Onlys will be here a full month before the Northside Festival too, playing with Golden Triangle and The Babies at Monster Island (which now has real, permanent stage!) on May 14, and Cake Shop on May 15. The band continue to release records at a Pollardian rate, with a fantastic new EP, August in My Mind, our on Captured Tracks (download "Diamond in the Dark" above), a split 7" with Golden Triangle, and at least two other singles out this year already. There's a video for "Vanishing Cream" at the bottom of this post, which is a single on French label Plastic Spoons. They've also finished their third album which will be out on In the Red sometime this year.

Moon Duo, which features Wooden Shjips' Erik Johnson and Sanae Yamada, released an EP on Woodsist earlier this year -- check out "Stumbling 22nd St." at the top of this post. I caught them the final, cold night at SXSW where I was a little worn out and cranky at that point for their droney, extended Loop-meets-Suicide two chord jams but I could imagine digging it more under sunnier circumstances.

Real Estate also have many more dates coming up between now and the end of August. Sic Alps are touring and reporting that a Captured Tracks Fest is happening in NYC again this summer too.

Woodsist Fest lineups, videos and everyone else's tour dates below...

Continue reading "mini Woodsist Fests in NYC & CA, Woods shows, Fresh & Onlys tour dates, Moon Duo & more"

by Bill Pearis

DOWNLOAD: Beaters - Fishage (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Nodzzz - True to Life (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Dom - Jesus (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Golden Girls - Newports (MP3)

The Soft Pack @ Cake shop in Feb (more by Gabi Porter)

The Soft Pack are here again, the first real shows in town they've played since releasing their debut album on Kemado: tonight (3/31) at Maxwell's, tomorrow (4/1) at Mercury Lounge, and Saturday (4/3) at Music Hall of Williamsburg. I've seen these guys a zillion times (and written about them nearly as much) but they remain one of my favorite current live acts. That said, I'm just a tad bit more excited about the bands who they've brought with them on tour: Nodzz, Beaters, and Male Bonding.

Geeky, funny, tuneful Nodzzz were relatively quiet in 2009 -- at least compared to some of their San Franciscan brethren -- touring early in the year and only releasing one single. Mind you, it was an excellent one, "True to Life," which made by Best of the 2009 list. They're bound to have a new record in the works,  so hopefully we'll get a bunch of fresh tunes.

Beaters

Beaters, from The Soft Pack's hometown of San Diego, are signed to Zoo Music, the label run by husband/wife duo Brandon of Crocodiles and head Dum Dum Girl, DeeDee. If you're familiar with their roster at all, you'll have a pretty good idea what to expect: dark, over-caffeinated, paranoid, heavy on the reverb. You can check out their single "Fishage" at the top of this post.

The Music Hall of Williamsburg show adds UK punks (and Sub Pop signees) Male Bonding who also play with The Smith Westerns and So Cow on Sunday (4/4) at Mercury Lounge.

Golden Girls

Two bands from Worcester, Mass are here this weekend -- Dom and Golden Girls. -- who play together tomorrow (4/1) at Pianos and then on Monday (4/5) at Cake Shop.

Of the two, I find Dom a little more interesting. There's some of that fifth-generation cassette tape chillwave sound going on, no doubt (which I'm getting a little waterlogged from frankly).  But they've got some good songs under that hiss (check out "Bochicha" on their MySpace) and appear to play real drums and guitars (as well as crappy old synths) so I have hopes that their live show will prove less gauzy.

Golden Girls are more straight-up indie rock, a duo on recordings but are a four-piece live. Raucous and on the sloppy side,  and with a single about cigarettes, you can draw a line from Golden Girls back to the Replacements pretty easily. They've only got two singles out so far, and I'm definitely curious to hear more.

A few more picks, by night, to take you through the weekend, along with tour dates and videos and stuff, below...

Continue reading "Beaters, Nodzzz, Best Coast, Ash, Abe Vigoda, Dom, Dum Dum Girls, Golden Girls, Soft Pack & more in This Week in Indie"

photos by Tim Griffin

Lucero

"...The bands were running late at Club Deville, but I was pleased to hear Centromatic on the stage. They sounded like classic rock and when Steve Miller Band's "Rock'N Me" came on after their set, it was in the same vein, but Centromatic was above and beyond.

Lucero came on next and killed it. Nichols' voice is like sandpaper on gravel and it has a booze-soaked and sorry quality that makes it sound like the hard nights and heartbreaks that he sings about are real experiences. Lucero is one of the few bands that I've seen (Free Energy comes to mind as well) that broke through to fans. Quite a few folks were dancing, jumping, singing and generally rocking out during their set..." [Rock Candy]

...It was a perfectly rowdy ending to the BrooklynVegan/DailyMotion day party at Club DeVille on Friday, March 19th (one of our seven shows this year). The day's eclectic lineup ranged from country to electro to singer-songwriter to comedy. We also made a huge effort to feed people and give away free stuff this year. Those who stopped by the free show got free Ear Piece ear plugs, Magic Hat beer, Firefly Sweet Tea vodka (that lasted the entire 6+ hours), Gundlach Bundschu wine, Raw Rev bars, Nadamoo ice cream, Hail Merry "Grawnola", breakfast tacos and Daily Juice catering. Action For Animals was on hand with baked goods for sale that helped raise $800 for charity. Somebody (and every band and comedian) won some Original Penguin clothes. Members of Passion Pit (aka the Wet Bandits) played the music between bands. KEXP was filming video. All in all an amazing day.

Catch Lucero in NYC at Music Hall of Williamsburg this Tuesday, March 30th with Glossary (tickets are still on sale). Centro-matic kicks off a house tour in Houston the same day.

You've already seen some of this Friday party HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE. Pictures, reviews and videos from it continue below...

Continue reading "Lucero, Centromatic, Nicole Atkins, Holly Miranda, Zola Jesus, more @ Club DeVille (BV/DailyMotion day party) - pics & video"

by Andrew Frisicano

Sufjan Stevens

Collaborations were the order of the day on Big Ears' Saturday, March 27th schedule (day two). At 1pm, the 802 Tour - Nico Muhly, Thomas Bartlett (Doveman) and Sam Amidon with violist Nadia Sirota - performed songs written by each. The National's Dessner brothers and drummer Bryan Devendorf joined for a selection of full-band Doveman songs, and the finale was a clamoring, epic version of the folk song "The Two Sisters" arranged by Nico (part of the percussion included Nico combing Thomas's hair). Sam played his own set with help from Thomas one day earlier, and later Saturday night.

Before that, the day started with Andrew W.K.'s Q&A-heavy lecture at the Knoxville Museum of Art (he played a set of music the night before) and a Bang on a Can All-Stars set that included works by Dave Longstreth, both at noon. Dirty Projectors performed later in the day (3:45pm) at Tennessee Theatre on a bill that also included DJ/Rupture and William Basinski who went on at the same time as Liturgy (who played at the Big Ears Annex at 2pm and then again at Pilot Light at midnight).

Clogs took the stage at the Bijou Theater with guests as well. Rumors of a solo set by Sufjan Steven circulated, but he only played one of his own songs, "Barn Owl Night Killer," on piano. Clogs were also assisted by Shara Worden, Aaron Dessner and Calder Quartet. Matt Berninger was delayed en route to Knoxville, so he didn't make his duet on "Last Song," for which main Clog Padma Newsome filled in. That wasn't the actual last song - new-album closer "We Were Here" was, which featured Sufjan on vocals and banjo along with Shara Worden and guitar by Aaron Dessner. A similar show happened in Brooklyn a few days earlier.

Joanna Newsom

The Saturday headliners - Vampire Weekend and Joanna Newsom - both played to sold out crowds (Vampire Weekend at the sprawling, ornate-adorned 1600 seat Tennessee Theater with opener Abe Vigoda). Joanna Newsom's set was opened by Fred Armisen aka Jens Hannemann, a master of "complicated drummer technique." Armisen also joined her set for one song to play awkward and out-of-place cowbell.

At the Tennessee, the night ended with Terry Riley's Autodreamagraphical Tales - music from Bang on a Can over Terry reading from his actual dreams (Eastern religion and weed popped up frequently) - and In C, led by BoaC's Evan Ziporyn and featuring the rest of Bang on a Can All-Stars as well as Calder Quartet, Clogs, Nico Muhly, Nadia Sirota, Gyan Riley, and Terry on voice. The open-ended song stretched to an hour, canceling out any chance to catch late night sets from Javelin and Gang Gang Dance. Gang Gang was stil going when I arrived, but the club shut down the power mid-song and flipped on the lights promptly at 3am, sending everyone home.

A recap of Friday is HERE. More pictures and videos from Saturday are below...

Continue reading "Big Ears Fest Day 2 - Joanna Newsom, Clogs w/ Sufjan, Fred Armisen, Nico Muhly, Terry Riley, more (pics, video, review) "

*Friday, March 19, 2010*
BrooklynVegan Free Day Party Presented by DailyMotion
@ Club DeVille - 900 Red River St, Austin, TX (NOON - 6 PM)
*free and open to the public, no RSVP necessary

Main stage:
12:00 Princeton
12:45 Twin Sister
01:30 Nicole Atkins
02:15 Sondre Lerche
03:00 Holly Miranda
03:45 The Antlers
04:30 Centro-matic
05:15 Lucero

DJs: Passion Pit

Inside stage:
12:30 - Active Child
01:15 - Pearly Gate Music
02:00 - Tig Notaro (comedian)
02:15 - Katie Stelmanis
03:00 - Joe Mande (comedian)
03:15 - Zola Jesus
04:00 - Abe Vigoda
04:45 - MNDR
05:30 - The Wave Pictures

FREE DRINKS COURTESY OF: Magic Hat & Firefly Vodka
(while supplies last)
FREE VEGAN BREAKFAST TACOS FROM: Izzoz Austin
(starting @ noon. while supplies last)
VEGAN BAKE SALE FOR CHARITY BY: VegAustin & Action for Animals
MORE FREE FOOD COURTESY OF: Daily Juice (catering from 2-5)
MORE FREE FOOD COURTESY OF: Raw Revolution Bars
MORE FREE FOOD COURTESY OF: Hail Merry
FREE EAR PLUGS FROM: Ear Peace
+ more TBA

If you've been following along, both on this site and at our @bvSXSW Twitter account, you probably pieced most this lineup together already. And I'm extremely happy to report that this is the final BrooklynVegan party lineup we have left to announce this year. We'll see you on Wednesday at Emo's and Club DeVille, Thursday at Hoek's and Spider House, Saturday at Red 7 and Galaxy Room and on Friday right here at Club Deville from noon-6pm (on TWO stages) (the second stage is inside).

Thanks to DailyMotion for helping make this all possible. They're not only our presenting partner on this party, but we'll be uploading live footage from SXSW all week long to our account at their site. Some of that footage, including from this party will be shot by our official radio partner, KEXP.

Thanks to also to Original Penguin clothing for providing some clothes to giveaway to a few lucky attendees at the show.

Like at Emo's and Red 7, we'll have 10 kegs worth of Magic Hat beer to give out at this show, not to mention lots of Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka to pour. And like at Emo's and Galaxy Room, we'll have free breakfast tacos and then late afternoon free catering by Daily Juice. All of our parties will be stocked with free Raw Revolution bars and Hail Merry Grawnola as well. And as if that's not enough, we're hosting a vegan bake sale for charity, courtesy of the fine folks at VegAustin.com and Action for Animals at this show. All money raised goes to Food for Life, an organization feeding Haitian and Chilean earthquake survivors.

Flyer design by Tammijean Triplett. Videos below...

Continue reading "a BrooklynVegan & DailyMotion Austin day party @ Club DeVille - full free lineup (Lucero, Antlers, Abe Vigoda, more) "

photos by Rachel Carr

The sold-out event, concisely named "No Cancer!" hoped to raise money for Irene Garcia, the mother of a prominent L.A. scenester who was recently diagnosed with what an event volunteer would only call "an extremely rare form of cancer." All proceeds from the daylong festival -- including ticket revenues and merchandise sales -- went directly to the cause.

Organized by local indie promoting giant Sean Carlson and his team at FYF Fest [I HATE ROCK N ROLL RECORDS and VIDEOTHING.COM], "No Cancer!" brought together an eclectic group of well-known and under-the-radar bands from Los Angeles and across the country, with acts hailing from New York and Texas performing over the course of the afternoon. [Daily Trojan]

As advertised, No Age, Vivian Girls, Abe Vigoda, Cowabunga Babes, Best Coast, Nodzzz, Darker My Love and others played "No Cancer: A benefit for our Friend's Mom" in L.A. on Sunday, February 7th. Sean Carlson and FYF [update: who were NOT the organizers of this - see fixed quote above] are also the ones behind The Soft Pack's 10 shows in 10 days one weak earlier. More pictures from the benefit, with the full lineup and Vivian Girls' setlist, below...

Continue reading "No Age, Vivian Girls, Abe Vigoda, Best Coast & others played a benefit for Irene Garcia in LA - pics"

Abe Vigoda @ The Smell in October (more by Rachel Carr)

If you happen to be in L.A. on Saturday, February 7th, "No Cancer: A benefit for our Friend's Mom" will be happening at a "secret" location (e-mail for info, below). Playing sets will be No Age, Vivian Girls, Abe Vigoda, Cowabunga Babes, Best Coast, Nodzzz, Darker My Love and others. A flyer and how to get info on the venue are below.

If you're in NYC, Abe Vigoda visit March 31st for a show at Mercury Lounge with Effi Briest and Cloud Nothings (who have plenty of dates coming up, listed below). Tickets are on sale now.

That show is sandwiched between dates Abe Vigoda opens for Vampire Weekend in March and April. Before those, the band plays the West Coast and Texas in early March with Lovvers.

All tour dates are below...

Continue reading "Abe Vigoda playing cancer benefit w/ Vivian Girls & No Age in LA, touring w/ Vampire Weekend, playing NYC (dates)"

Heavy Trash @ Mercury Lounge in 2009 (more by Tim Griffin)

Tickets are on sale (@ noon) for the show National / Beach House show coming to Prospect Park. Tickets may still be available for the 1.5 month sooner Radio City show too, not to mention the Beach House show coming to Webster Hall.

Ringo Starr and His All Star Band are playing Radio City Music Hall on July 7th. Tickets are currently on "Internet Presale" with regular sale beginning Friday at 9am.

Abe Vigoda are playing Mercury Lounge on March 31st. Tickets are on sale (@ noon).

Heavy Trash are playing Mercury Lounge on April 29th. Tickets are on sale. Want to seew Heavy Trash much sooner? They're also at Public Assembly this Saturday night.

Heavy Trash shared a bill with Those Darlins at Mercury Lounge over the summer. Tomorrow (2/5) Those Darlins headline Bowery Ballroom for the first time.

photos by Rachel Carr

Mika Miko said goodbye to seven years of being a band with a trio of year-end shows at The Smell in L.A. The three-night run culimated in a final January 1st show, in which the band played for about an hour and a half. Rachel Carr, our photographer who captured the action, described the scene as "constant stage divers, balloons, confetti, glitter, six drummers, handheld fireworks, a stage full of friends (including members of other esteemed LA bands like Abe Vigoda and No Age), and several middle-aged relatives clinging bravely to the monitors."

Two-fifths of Mika Miko will carry on as part of the Strange Boys, who have 2010 shows planned around the West Coast and the South.

Goodbye Mike Miko! More pictures from the last show (1/1/2010) and videos from all three nights (including New Years Eve) are below...

Continue reading "Mika Miko played three final shows @ The Smell in L.A. - here are pics from the last one & video from New Years Eve"

Trend You Wish Would Go Away

1. 90s revivalism (No Age, Japandroids, Cymbals Eat Guitars)
2. Afropop indie (Dirty Projectors, Fool's Gold, Abe Vigoda)
3. Animal Collective acolytes (Blind Man's Colour, Our Brother the Native, USF)
4. Balearic (jj, John Talabot, Windsurf/Hatchback)
5. Chillwave/glo-fi (Washed Out, Neon Indian, Nite Jewel)
6. Dubstep and its offshoots (wonky, funky, bassline)
7. Post-Lily Allen UK pop (La Roux, Little Boots, Florence and the Machine)
8. Prim, buttoned-up indie (Grizzly Bear, Andrew Bird, St. Vincent)
9. Shitgaze/lo-fi aesthetics (Times New Viking, Wavves, Vivian Girls)

Vote for that & more in Pitchfork's 2009 Reader's Poll. Image via Hipster Runoff.

photos by Rachel Carr

After ten years collecting sweat, The Smell's fundraiser for an A/C unit, last Wednesday night (11/11), brought out excited supporters, but also protestors who enjoy asphyxiating. Neither party could resist Health, Abe Vigoda, Man's Assassination, Man, and Tearist on one Smelly lineup.

The venue traps B.O. night after night, spiritually nourishing reckless bands and raucous audiences. "In the middle of summer when the place is super hot and packed, we always say we're getting A/C, then we end up putting it off one day when it's not so bad. But this time we're really going to do it. Right away," says co-owner Jim Smith. But will the Smell be as sweet if it doesn't reek?

"I like the Smell," a feminine voice complained from the packed crowd. "It's like doing someone--until you shower you smell them all over!" True; stench always follows when primal instincts are involved.

Notice that Health's guitar straps are reinforced with gaff tape? It's all they can do to keep from rapturously flinging their instruments. Jake Duzsik sighs and chants, holding the monster effect mic to his mouth like a grenade. John Famiglietti and Jupiter Keyes whip between amps, hypnotized and rabid, as BJ Miller pounds his drums. The audience pushed, craned, and grabbed each other responsively. [LA Weekly]

The LA benefit show was three days after HEALTH played an intense set at Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin. They were last in NYC in September. Abe Vigoda played Death By Audio on 11/6. More pictures from The Smell, below...

Continue reading "HEALTH, Abe Vigoda & friends helped The Smell raise money for an AC - pics "

LA's Abe Vigoda are visiting New York this weekend. You can catch them at Death By Audio in Brooklyn with Extra Life on Friday, November 6th. It's one day before they head upstate to play a show with Ponytail at Hamilton College (which is open to the public). All dates below...

Continue reading "Abe Vigoda stopping in NYC before playing Hamilton College w/ Ponytail (and other tour dates)"

"Featuring over 2 hours of live bands from Los Angeles and beyond, "Live at The Smell" captures the live energy that pumps through LA's legendary independent DIY all-ages venue. Recorded in high-quality audio and video over a month period in Fall 2008, the DVD gives you the feeling of being immersed in one of the many gigs presented there each week for over 10 years. The music is clean and powerful, the footage is raw and wild, and the energy is LIVE.

Presented on a gorgeous 6-panel Digipak with superb all-mural photographs by Wild Don Lewis and liner notes by Jim Smith (owner / operator of The Smell), "Live at The Smell" is a collector's document, something you won't want to miss. Even if it gets on NetFlix, even when you find it on your favorite torrent site, it won't be the same as holding it in your hand. 6 murals are represented - featuring artists Cali deWitt, Jesse Spears, and some unknown dude from the 80s when it was a caballero bar.

The bands featured on this movie are the cream of the indie-alt-rock / experimental bands that play the club on a regular basis: Mae Shi, Foot Village, Ponytail, Abe Vigoda, High Places, Gowns, BARR, No Age, HEALTH, Captain Ahab (in order of appearance)."

One of those bands, No Age, had three upcoming NY shows. Now they have four five. Those are listed below along with the DVD trailer... and (UPDATE), the entire movie (courtesy of Pitchfork.TV)...

Continue reading "Live At The Smell on DVD, online ++ No Age add 4th NY show "

photos by Tim Griffin

Abe Vigoda's new drummer @ The Whitney

Abe Vigoda is currently on tour with Talbot Tagora. That trip brought the two bands to Cake Shop and Market Hotel in NYC over the weekend (the Market Hotel show was originally scheduled for Monster Island). Abe Vigoda also played a free show at The Whitney with Grooms while they were here. More pictures and a video from that show below...

Continue reading "Abe Vigoda played Cake Shop, Market Hotel & the Whitney w/ Grooms (pics & video) "

Vivian Girls @ Bowery Ballroom in December (more by Zach Stern)

As we pointed out back in April, and further confirmed in a list of Abe Vigoda tour dates, The Whitney is hosting some indie rock shows this July, in conjunction with their Dan Graham Retrospective. And the full schedule looks something like this:

Fri, June 26 - Acoustic Evening with The Feelies
Fri, July 10 - Titus Andronicus / Real Estate
Fri, July 17 - Abe Vigoda / Grooms (Muggabears)
Fri, July 24 - (band TBA) / YellowFever
Fri, July 31 - Vivian Girls / These Are Powers

The Feelies show is "Free with Museum admission (free for Whitney members)." and "Tickets for this [Feelies] concert are available day of show only, beginning at 1 pm at the Museum. Space is limited; tickets are first-come, first-served." The other four shows basically say the same thing, but just, "Free with museum admission. Seating is first-come, first-served. No reservations." More details below.

Other programs include "Dan Graham in Conversation with Glenn Branca" and a family performance of Rock and Roll Ice Cream by Japanther. Full schedule below...

Continue reading "indie rock shows @ The Whitney in July (Vivian Girls, Titus Andronicus, These are Powers, Yellow Fever & more) "

DOWNLOAD: Abe Vigoda - Don't Lie (MP3)

Abe Vigoda @ South Street Seaport 7/11/08 (more by Chris Tuite)

LA punks Abe Vigoda are going on tour across North America this July. That includes three NYC shows: Friday, July 17th the band plays an early set at the Whitney Museum, then a late set at the Cake Shop. The next night, Saturday, July 18th, the band is at the Monster Island Basement. All those NYC gigs are with tourmates Talbot Tagora, who, as we recently mentioned, are one of the Seattle bands that recently signed to Hardly Art.

The Whitney show is part of the museum's Dan Graham retrospective running from June 25th to October 11th. As we previously wrote, the museum is planning shows on July 10th, 17th, 24th and 31th, during its weekly pay-what-you-wish Friday 6-9pm slot. Those performances are to feature "young bands that have inherited the New York rock scene from bands that Dan Graham has written about and/or worked with, such as The Feelies, Television, and Sonic Youth."

The Feelies are one of the band's playing the museum -- they have an acoustic set scheduled for Friday, June 26th.

The newest Abe Vigoda release was the band's Reviver EP, which came out in February on Post Present Medium. "Don't Lie," from that record, is posted above.

All Abe Vigoda tour dates, with clips that include "Don't Lie" live with the Vivian Girls and more, below...

Continue reading "Abe Vigoda & Talbot Tagora - 2009 Tour Dates (Whitney Museum, Cake Shop & Monster Island)"

photos by Faith-Ann Young

DOWNLOAD: Black Lips - "O Katrina!" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Monotonix - "Ride" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Lucero - "What Else Would You Have Me Be" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Abe Vigoda - "Don't Lie" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Cut Off Your Hands - "Turn Cold" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Thao With The Get Down Stay Down - "Bag Of Hammers" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Japanther - "Um Like Yer Smile Is Totally Ruling Me Right Now" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Red Cortez - "World At Rest" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: HOWL - "Oma" (MP3)

A set of pictures from Tuesday's Black Lips show at Music Hall of Williamsburg, and the lineup for next Saturday's free, 3rd annual Mess With Texas party in Austin, below....

Continue reading "Black Lips played MHOW (pics), playing Mess With Texas in Austin (as are a lot of other bands - full free lineup)"